aleon1215

I gotta Civic 93 LX D15B7 AT.

So far since I've bought the car (late March) I've done the following: spark plugs, wires, dist. cap & rotor, air+fuel+oil filters, changed the engine and tranny oil, flushed the radiator and changed the thermostat, changed the head+valve cover+intake manifold+oil pan gasket, and a new oil pick up screen.

It was running fine for about 2 weeks after around the city but once I took it on the highway I noticed it wouldn't accelerate right away. The engine would rev slowly then shoot up. Ever since then it would start to overheat after about 10 blocks and the tach would jump up and down. The fans are coming on and turning the heater on doesn't cool the car.

Could a transmission problem cause it to overheat? Or perhaps bad timing/misfiring? I would just swap the entire engine but I have no intention of keeping the car. Any help?

UrbanDiplomat

iTrader: (1)

Sounds like you have a misfire and low coolant level. I'd recheck my head gasket work by testing the coolant for exhaust gases at the radiator. Check the compression and check the oil for coolant.

strategy400

Head gasket replacement on B7 is hit and miss unless you deck block/mill head.

UrbanDiplomat

iTrader: (1)

I have the same trim as him; 4 door. Blew a head gasket a few weeks ago.

jbpnoman

It sounds less like a misfire, and more like timing set incorrectly. Get a timing light and double check your timing before you go worrying about the head gasket again. Also, get a leakdown tester and use it.

aleon1215

I drained the oil and didn't notice anything and coolant level is fine. Besides, it doesn't overheat if it's just sitting. Only after I drive it a few blocks.

I'm inclined to agree but would bad timing cause an overheat? I'll recheck the spark plugs and check the timing anyways.

aleon1215

I forgot to mention. Once it overheats and I park it, the engine would rev up and down constantly. Could it just be an issue with the IM?

jbpnoman

Check and fix the timing first, and we can address everything else piece by piece. Trying to diagnose and fix everything at the same time is the wrong way to do it.

motegicivic

Timing would not cause overheating.

You did the headgasket? Did you have it milled?

aleon1215

No, I checked the head for warp before putting it back on and torqued it to specs. Since there wasn't any smoke or milky oil I didn't bother to recheck.

Haven't gotten around to checking the timing yet but there appears there's a mystery leak. Overnight it went from full coolant to none at all. And no puddle under the engine. o.O?

ekphil

This sounds like there is just air bubbles in the cooling system have you bled the cooling system.

anothersickhatch

This.

jbpnoman

So, while you're checking your timing, go ahead and bleed the system at the same time.

aleon1215

Sorry for the late update. Crazy work schedule and off again/on again internet.

Yeah I bled the cooling and the overheating isn't an issue anymore. However, I'm starting to suspect a distributor problem. After driving a few blocks (and sometimes just starting the car) the engine will feel like stalling and eventually does stall out. I remember I had this issue before with my last civic and turned out to be a bad dizzy. The previous owner did practically zero maintenance. I'm swapping the dizzy and battery and a few more things this weekend and bring you guys the news.

dueyx99

ignition coil is easy enough to test for primary and secondary winding resistance, but also check to make sure you see no marks on the coil housing, or the steel bracket for arcing, and if you say tach is jumping and the car isn't actually revving up and down to reflect the tach, that's classic igniter issues

aleon1215

Sounds manageable enough. And fixing that should help with engine start up and smoothing out the idle? Just out of curiosity, would it matter what position the rotor is in when reinstalling the distributor?

L000nyatick

timing light

jbpnoman

Yes, it does matter, but IIRC the rotor should be keyed, and only go onto the dizzy one way.